Search Results for 'Michael Quinlivan'

Mayo rattled home 5-20 to see off Tipperary with ease and book their place in another All Ireland final - but they left Croke Park with plenty to work on as the Munster champions hit the back of the Mayo net three times and if they had taken the two early goal chances that presented themselves it could have been a very different game.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

2020 has been a year like no other. A lot has happened since I was on these pages.

Mayo have plenty to work on ahead of their next outing in the qualifiers was the opinion of Stephen Rochford after their win in Semple Stadium on Saturday.

A cursory glance at the final score of this one would give those who weren’t paying attention to the action the impression that this was just another regulation win for a division one team against a lower ranked side in the qualifiers.

With Mayo's place in division one secure for next season it was nice to sit back, relax, and enjoy the league finals played in glorious sunshine in Croke Park last weekend. I was on co-commentary for Radio One for the Kildare and Galway game on Sunday which felt like a friendly encounter for the first half, however it did liven up for the second period.

Mayo have been involved in enough epic semi-finals over the last two years and have come out on the wrong side of the result at the end of the day that Sunday’s performance over Tipperary won’t mind them that much at this stage, with four weeks to put things right before they face either Dublin or Kerry in the final.

After Mayo's superb victory over Tyrone I have to pinch myself to comprehend that Mayo are playing Tipperary in an All-Ireland semifinal on Sunday. It sounds bizarre. If we go back to June 18 and after watching Mayo's poor performance against Galway, we firstly did not see Mayo getting to a semifinal and if they did we certainly did not expect the opposition to be from the premier county. Clare and Tipperary have both been very successful examples of the qualifiers in 2016 but Tipp's trouncing of Connacht champions Galway by nine points has certainly made them the number one success story.

At the end of the day the long and winding road has led back to the destination that most had hoped for, Mayo in the first All Ireland semifinal on Sunday August 21. Rather than coming through to this stage as provincial champions with just a quarter-final to play, Mayo have made their way through the scenic route and disposed of Leinster opposition twice and then the Ulster champions to get here. Next up for them is a challenge from a group of men from Munster, but once again it is not one of the ones we would have expected. Tipperary, a division three side that finished their league campaign just two points above relegation to division four for next year, have wandered their way through this championship summer to become the story of the summer.

The last 20 minutes in Croke Park last Sunday afternoon was very tough going for the Galwegians who had made the trip to Dublin support their team.